'Absolute miracle': Two missing Humboldt County girls found safe

A member of the search and rescue team talks to one of the Carrico sisters after they were found 1.4 miles south of their home on Sunday morning after being missing since Friday afternoon.

A member of the search and rescue team talks to one of the Carrico sisters after they were found 1.4 miles south of their home on Sunday morning after being missing since Friday afternoon.

Photo: Courtesy Of Humboldt County Sheriff's Office

Photo: Courtesy Of Humboldt County Sheriff's Office

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A member of the search and rescue team talks to one of the Carrico sisters after they were found 1.4 miles south of their home on Sunday morning after being missing since Friday afternoon.

A member of the search and rescue team talks to one of the Carrico sisters after they were found 1.4 miles south of their home on Sunday morning after being missing since Friday afternoon.

Photo: Courtesy Of Humboldt County Sheriff's Office

'Absolute miracle': Two missing Humboldt County girls found safe

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The Humboldt County Sheriff's Office announced two Benbow girls who went missing Friday afternoon have both been found safe.

According to a news release from the sheriff's office, Caroline Carrico, age 5, and Leia Carrico, age 8, are believed to have walked away from their home on Twin Trees Road and into a nearby wooded area. A press conference by the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office that was set to be held at 10:30 a.m. Sunday was "delayed due to developing information," the sheriff's office posted to their Facebook page just before 10:40 a.m.

That developing information was the best imaginable: The girls were found.

"I'm pleased to report we're all witnessing a miracle," a spokesman from the sheriff's office announced Sunday morning.

Caroline and Leia are healthy and able to walk, officials said. They were rescued a little over a mile from where they went missing 44 hours prior.

Rescuers were able to glean some sense of where the girls were headed, thanks to some clues found during their search, said Lt. Mike Fridley of the Humboldt County Sheriff's Department during a Saturday press conference.

"We have found some clues during the day that have made us change our directions," said Fridley. "We found some granola bar wrappers and we were able to confirm with the mom that yes, these are granola bars that [she's] bought in the last few days. So the wrappers showed us a direction from where they started to where the wrappers ended at."

The two girls were last seen at 2:30 p.m. outside their house on Friday, and officials were notified of their disappearance at 6 p.m.

Crews were unable to find them Friday night and continued their search into Saturday. According to the sheriff's office, "the search area consists of steep, heavily wooded terrain" and the public should avoid the search area.

"We appreciate the overwhelming community support in the search for local missing girls Caroline and Leia Carrico, however we need community members to please stay clear of the search area," the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office said in a tweet. "We have plenty of specialized teams and equipment searching."

The Humboldt County Sheriff's Office also asked on Twitter that citizens stop flying drones in the area.

"Citizen drones are making it dangerous for our assisting helicopters to fly," they wrote. "Please do not operate a drone in the search area."

The Coast Guard, the US National Guard and CAL FIRE are among those who helped with the search.

Caroline Carrico is described as a white female with hazel eyes and blonde hair with purple streaks. She was last seen wearing a maroon rain jacket, blue jeans and pink boots.

Leia Carrico is also described as a white female with hazel eyes and blonde hair, but has a large freckle on her left cheek. She was last seen wearing a dark gray hooded long sleeve shirt and purple rain boots.

While members of the public have been instructed to stay clear of the search area, anyone with information regarding the possible whereabouts of the girls should call (707) 441-5000.